CAROUSEL (2018) Previews — Page 34

Well that was just a bore, to me. I don't get the Henry love? From the second he stepped on stage it all felt false to me. I just didn't buy the accent or his physicality? Why was he always lumbering? I never saw the spark or charm that would make Mueller fall for him in the first place. Mueller was fine but gave a performance we've seen from her. I thought Mendez was quite good and didn't feel too broad to me. The acting just all felt all over. The NY Ballet dancers are great, but oof those book scenes are rough. There was just no cohesion and therefore I just couldn't get invested. It amazed me how many people were crying around me as I felt so disconnected from it all.

I'm glad I read this thread when the show was in previews. I was prepared for the lackluster direction and terrible accents and I actually came out having a relatively positive experience. There was a lot of wasted potential with these performers. Their vocals were so good and the text is more sophisticated than I realized (I've never seen a full production before) that it's a real shame they weren't directed to find more emotional truth. Also, having seen the show I can see where color conscious casting for Billy could have been really powerful. But still, you can't kill Carousel. Those songs still gave me goosebumps and when there wasn't any meddling I was able to see the sophistication of the book's approach to domestic abuse and toxic masculinity. Having seen it, I don't know why you would question whether you could perform Carousel in 2018.

I'm curious how I would have felt without the cuts to the material/weak direction, especially about Enoch and the death scene.

God. Seeing this thread just reminded me how misguided this production was. Such a shame because the talent was there.